Hobart becomes the first city in Australia to ban single-use plastic takeaway food packaging

Hobart has become the first city in the country to ban single-use plastic takeaway food packaging. CHECK WHAT ITEMS ARE INCLUDED >>

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IN an effort to drive down the amount of plastic waste going to landfill, Hobart is now officially the first Australian city to ban single-use plastic takeaway food packaging.

The City of Hobart’s single use plastics by-law comes into effect from Thursday.

Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds said other states and territories were starting to look at implementing similar bans, but Hobart’s approach was the first and most comprehensive.

“Our city is leading the way nationally in taking decisive action to reduce plastic waste in response to strong community concerns,” she said.

“It is really important to get rid of single-use plastics because they are wasteful and create huge problems for our environment.

“We expect this by-law will prevent 600 tonnes of single-use plastics going to landfill every year, equivalent to around 150 trucks full of waste.

“This is a huge step towards achieving our ambitious goal of zero waste to landfill by 2030.”

Cheryl Daci of Daci and Daci Bakers who have been using environmentally friendly takeaway packaging for 10 years. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES

Cr Reynolds said the council would continue to lobby the state government for a statewide ban of single-use plastics.

Hobart businesses have had more than a year to adapt to the new requirements, with about half of all takeaway businesses already on that path by the end of last year.

Co-owner of local Hobart bakery and patisserie Daci and Daci, Cheryl Daci, said their Murray St cafe had been plastic free since it first opened 10 years ago.

“It’s an ethical stance we took – we’re passionate supporters of the environment and we’re living in the cleanest, greenest city in Australia, so it’s great to see this being enforced by the council,” she said.

What exactly is banned?

The by-law only applies to businesses that provide or sell food in packaging that can be taken from the premises for immediate consumption including:

*All single-use plastic takeaway food packaging

*Other items like cutlery, cups, straws and condiment packaging

*Doesn’t apply to things like coffee cups or Tupperware containers provided by the customer, or where the food packaging was not provided by the retailer, such as a bottle of soft drink.

The Lanney Pillar temporary artwork launched at William Crowther’s Franklin Square memorial

A NEW provocative artwork in central Hobart aims to push back against memorials to “male, wealthy and entitled” colonialists.

Franklin Square is home to the statue of William Crowther, a 19th century surgeon whose reputation was marred for his role in mutilating the remains of Tasmanian Aboriginal man William Lanne – sometimes called Lanney.

The City of Hobart invited artists to submit proposals for temporary artworks to be installed on or near the statue, with four selected to be displayed over the next year, with an aim of provoking public conversation about the future of the statue.

The second piece, The Lanney Pillar 2021, by Tasmanian filmmaker Roger Scholes and Professor Greg Lehman, was launched on Wednesday.

Artist and filmmaker Roger Scholes and Tasmanian Aboriginal writer and curator Greg Lehman who collaborated to create the Lanney Pillar sculpture at Franklin Square, Hobart. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

The new artwork is a three metre high sculpture alongside the statue featuring a series of stacked wooden blocks showing archival images and a solar-powered LED screen showing film footage and archival material.

A QR code on the base of the sculpture allows viewers to access a 12-minute film online about Lanne.

Prof Lehman said it was important to “expose” the function of colonial statues in Tasmania’s history.

Part of The Lanney Pillar sculpture at Franklin Square, Hobart. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

“Memorials to people like Crowther, who are usually male, wealthy and entitled, celebrate how they served the interests of colonial empires, but they say nothing about the people who were pushed aside or abused in the process,” he said.

“This installation pushes back to acknowledge Lanney’s extraordinary life.”

Each of the four artworks will be in place for up to two months, with community feedback sought on each, which will contribute to the development of a permanent response to the Crowther statue.